The Maroondah City Council wanted to create a truly innovative Council Customer Service experience. They created Realm.
Realm is a place for the community and visitors to engage with council and each other. The Realm Centre for Regional Knowledge and Innovation was designed to inspire lifelong learning, and includes a 1000sqm library, contemporary art space and co-working space.
The creators of the space sought a specific aesthetic that called for natural light-coloured timbers. A staircase was designed as the centre-piece of Realm and the art gallery floor needed to be a blank canvas to complement, but not compete with, the works of the leading practice artists that would regularly fill the space.
Being high traffic and highly visible areas, the stairs and art-space floor needed to be both beautiful and hard wearing. They also needed to be southern Australian species, as requested by the Council.
Darren Carrolan, Managing Director of Architectural Floors in Melbourne, was engaged to specify and install the timber. He has 26 years experience in commercial install in high profile Melbourne spaces.
“I contacted Anthony Smith at Britton Timbers and we discussed the best timber options for the requirements of the space. We decided to specify pale timbers from the Gippsland Mill, predominantly Chestnut and Stringybark.”
“It fitted all the criteria, being a pale southern Australian species, and super hard wearing.”
"Anthony Smith is always my first call for Timber. In 26 years in the business I've never found anyone that gives better service. He always provides quality, top end timber that I can trust to perform. I’ve never had a problem on a job with Britton’s timber."
“When installing timber, in public spaces in particular, you have to trust the product that your putting in there to perform for the long term. I trust Anthony to deliver that for me every time.”
